Equity Bank Founder to Lead Mt. Kenya Region to New Economic Growth

Peter Munga, the founder of Equity Bank is leading Mt Kenya region in the implementation of an ambitious Sh100 billion program to transform the economic fortunes of the region.

Munga is at the head of the Mount Kenya Foundation, a caucus comprising the region’s prominent business people, who, according a Daily Nation report “will lead and coordinate the vision.”

The blueprint, according to the newspaper, has been endorsed by 10 Mt Kenya region governors.

Infrastructure

The governors want the government to hasten the development of Thika-Nanyuki transport corridor for industrialization by connecting five of the region’s counties to a major road and railway line.

They also want the proposed railway line to be extended to connect to Isiolo so that the region will benefit from the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport (Lapsset) corridor.

Plans to turn Kenol-Nyeri Road into a dual carriageway should be fast tracked, the blueprint urges.

The blueprint also calls for establishment of a special economic zone that will allow setting up of light industries such as “business processes outsourcing centres”, computer and vehicle assembly plants, and factories for making alternative building materials.

Branding

The plan proposes the promotion and branding of the region as a distinct tourism destination, and setting aside of funds to develop niche products such as agro-tourism.

The plan comes a year after the governors signed a memorandum of understanding establishing the Mt Kenya and Aberdare Counties Economic Bloc, with a population of 17 million people.

Priority pillars of the organization are agriculture and agri-business, industrialisation, health-care, tourism, water and resource management, infrastructure and ICT.